Five to Play

mystery house (1980)

This was the first adventure game, designed by Roberta Williams and coded by Ken. Using commands, the player was tasked with solving a murder mystery, set in a Victorian mansion. The couple produced the game within a month, and it sold 10,000 copies.

King’s Quest i: Quest For the crown (1984)

This title was the first built on Sierra’s Adventure Game Interpreter engine. The game was designed by Roberta and features unique pseudo-3d visuals, which let players interact with the game’s different environments.

leisure Suit larry in the land of the lounge lizards (1987)

The Leisure Suit Larry series became infamous for its raunchy humour and cheeky wit. It follows the sleazy Larry Laffer’s attempts to get lucky, marking Ken’s eagerness to take risks with his titles.

Quest For glory ii: trial by Fire (1990)

This text-based game was a unique adventure/role-playing hybrid. A choice of classes gave players different options for solving problems, while major plot points were tied to the game’s clock. The game also utilised procedural streets to create enormous cities.

Phantasmagoria (1995)

This interactive movie game was stretched over seven CDROMS; featuring 25 actors, 1,000 backgrounds and a production team of 200. Despite drawing controversy for its depiction of violence, it was an enormous hit – earning $12 million in its opening weekend alone.